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As a skin-care obsessive (and the Strategist’s resident bath-and-body correspondent), I’m very particular about the products I use on a daily basis — and chances are the skin-care lover in your life is the same way. They’re probably also up to speed on the latest TikTok trends, scrolling the SkincareAddiction sub-Reddit before bed, and keeping constant tabs on celebrity-vetted products and brands, which makes finding an acceptable skin-care gift (that they haven’t already tried) that much more perplexing.
With all that in mind, I interviewed skin-care experts, including dermatologists and beauty writers, and scoured our archive for gifts to give to a discerning skin-care fanatic. I also incorporated several items I use in my own routine and can’t live without, any of which would make excellent gifts. Read on for the best skin-care gift sets, products, tools, and more — and don’t forget to check out our holiday hub, which features ideas for everyone on your list.
Skin-care sets to gift
If you haven’t heard, one of our favorite all-in-one skin-care ingredients is snail mucin — which is, in fact, a slimy substance derived from snails, specifically the common garden snail Cryptomphalus aspersa. For years, our beauty contributor Rio Viera-Newton has praised the CosRX snail-mucin essence, which is 96.3 percent snail mucin, because it helps to combat dry skin, acne scarring, and hyperpigmentation. This set includes a travel-size bottle of that essence, along with CosRX’s cleanser, eye cream, and nourishing cream. While most skin-care obsessives are probably familiar with these CosRX formulas, they won’t be able to resist some TSA-approved minis if they’ve been trip-planning for the new year.
Real ones know lip care is crucial to any skin-care regimen, especially considering how delicate the skin is on and around your lips. They can choose from five creamy flavors with this set of nourishing Laneige minis, which includes the brand’s best-selling berry Sleeping Mask, plus mango, gummy bear, peach iced tea, and new watermelon. Our senior editor Ailbhe Malone bought the kit for her Gen-Z cousin and reports that “it went down very well.”
If your recipient raves about their Rhode lip balm, consider this skin-barrier-focused kit. Packed into a puffy cosmetics bag, the set comes with Pineapple Cleanser, the Peptide Glazing Fluid, Glazing Milk, and Barrier Restore Cream, which happens to be one of our best lightweight moisturizers for dry skin. After using the cream for a few weeks in conjunction with the brand’s glazing fluid, our writer Tembe Denton-Hurst noticed that her skin felt “soft and moisturized and didn’t look dry as quickly.”
Here’s a set of French beauty products that I purchased to target dark spots caused by breakouts. It includes a full-size Vinoperfect Brightening serum, which uses grape-derived resveratrol to brighten and even out skin tone, plus a sample-size eye cream and moisturizer.
You can’t go wrong with this Charlotte Tilbury serum and moisturizer duo, which is a favorite of New York City–based dermatologist Hadley King, a clinical instructor of dermatology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University. It’s great for a skin-care neophyte or anyone looking for a better canvas for their makeup. King says the serum contains two anti-aging peptides: acetyl tetrapeptide-11 and acetyl tetrapeptide-9, which may help to improve skin elasticity and firmness. It also contains several humectants, including glycerin, lactic acid, hyaluronic acid, and polyglutamic acid, that can create an immediate plumping effect, making the skin look younger and smoother. Meanwhile, the magic moisturizer cream — which is one of our best face moisturizers for dry skin — is rich in antioxidants and contains soothing ingredients, such as aloe, allantoin, and rose water, in addition to peptides to support collagen production.
Skin-care products to gift
I found the brand Mara Beauty earlier this year when I was searching for a better way to remove all my makeup. I love that many of its products contain algae, a newer ingredient in the skin-care world used for hydration and antioxidative properties. If your giftee is apprehensive about double-cleansing, this skin-smoothing oil will become the winning first step in their regimen. It effortlessly melts away makeup and SPF and makes my face feel super-clean without leaving behind any oily residue. I love that it contains exfoliating fruit enzymes, including papaya, pumpkin, and pineapple. Plus, it can be left on for 15 minutes as a light peel or used as a shaving oil.
“A big old bottle of Hyaluronic Acid 2 percent + B5 always goes down as a treat,” says Griffiths, who adds that the Ordinary recently reformulated this serum to absorb into the skin better, leaving less of a tacky finish. Viera-Newton likes that it uses both hyaluronic acid and ceramides, which are fatty acids that support our skin barrier, so your recipient will be getting maximum hydration. “Apply this on damp skin, as it will enhance the serum’s ability to draw moisture from the environment and deeply hydrate the skin, maximizing its plumping and moisturizing effects,” Viera-Newton says.
“Beauty sleep is a truly great gift,” says Dr. Noëlle S. Sherber, who recommends luxury skin-care brand La Mer’s new night cream. Co-founder of Sherber + Rad Dr. Sherber says it’s an exciting skin-care launch because the brand invested heavily in research and development to create their new star ingredient, MRA-3, a marine “retinol alternative.” The formula is very soothing and smoothing and boasts improvement in skin texture and firmness without causing irritation. And at $230 a jar, it very well might not be one they’d buy for themself.
The gold standard of vitamin C serums, SkinCeuticals is the OG formula from which a thousand dupes were launched, says our writer and resident beauty expert Rachael Griffiths. She recommends it for an older giftee: The serum is featured in many of her shopping guides — notably, it appears in her list of the best skin-care products for your 50s — because it brightens skin, evens out tone, and protects against UV damage.
Beauty buffs will know of Augustinus Bader’s celebrity-coveted Rich Cream, which has been touted as “the secret to rich-person skin.” Dr. Sherber says the pillowy-textured cream is a highly repurchased product among her patients — but just last month, the brand released a new Rich Eye Cream formula to nourish, firm, and smooth the eye area. “With colder winter weather ahead and festive occasions on the calendar, a super-nourishing eye cream to keep eyes looking bright is a fantastic gift idea,” Dr. Sherber told me.
I know this isn’t your typical skin-care product, but Dr. King suggests these Face Reality supplements, which are specially formulated for breakout-prone skin. They’re designed to counter inflammation and boost overall wellness, according to the esthetician-founded brand. Clear Skin Balance contains omega 3s and vitamin D to brighten uneven tone, while Clear Skin Restore has probiotics, zinc, and niacinamide to reduce the severity of breakouts, help with oil control, and support immune health.
Eye masks to gift
A skin-care-obsessed friend will know that the skin around our eyes is thinner and more delicate than on other parts of the face. If they don’t already have reusable eye masks, then these ones from Dieux Forever make a perfect gift and are a favorite of chemist and aesthetician Esther Olu. “Taking the extra step to tend to the eyes can be very beneficial,” she says. You can also reuse these silicone masks by sliding them over an eye cream to lock in moisture and hydration. “What makes the product particularly unique is how versatile it is: Its occlusive nature means you get increased penetration for any products used in the eye area,” adds Olu. “Then they’re very useful for makeup application, as the shape means you can kind of use them as a guide for eyeshadow and powder and not worry about product fallout.”
“These hydrogel under-eye patches have the immediate cooling effect,” Dr. King says. They contain humectants like glycerin and hyaluronic acid to hydrate, smooth, and plump the skin, as well as allantoin to soothe, vitamin C to brighten, and anti-aging peptides to help minimize the appearance of crow’s feet. Each box includes three pairs of eye masks, and right now, they’re available in this festive limited-edition red colorway.
Skin-care tools to gift
Ice rollers or globes can help with de-puffing, but here’s an even more effective solution: Therabody’s Depuffing Wand is designed to offer instant cold and heated face treatments. This ingenious device has become the first step in my skin-care routine both morning and night. The cold setting helps to reduce swelling around my eye area in minutes, while the heated option is great for prepping the skin for product absorption. At under $150, the price is right for this first-of-its-kind skin-care tool (that requires only the touch of a button).
Our senior editor Crystal Martin is a self-described “humidifier truther,” and when it comes to keeping her skin supple during cold, dry-air months, she turns to Canopy’s portable device. I also own this compact humidifier — along with two of the brand’s larger bedside models — and love how I can move it from my bathroom counter to my desk while I work from home. Along with boosting their skin’s hydration, it can be used as an aroma diffuser and even help alleviate flu or allergy symptoms. Plus, it has dishwasher-safe parts, so it’s extremely easy to clean.
If they’re new to red-light therapy, they’ll be able to dip their toes in with Solawave’s Advanced Skincare Wand, which is ideal for quick spot treatments or smaller areas like the lip-line or under-eyes. Dr. King is a fan because the portable tool offers a combination of red light, galvanic current, warmth, and facial massage, all in an easy-to-use wand that can treat the whole face in around three minutes. “And I like to combine it with the Solawave LightBoost Wand Activating Serum,” King told me, adding that the brand just launched the lightweight formula last month. “It can be used on its own or with the wand for glide enhancement and added benefits from the ionic mineral complex.”
“The item I’ve been asked about most this year would be an LED mask,” says Griffiths. While our top recommendation is the Omnilux, she has been testing the more budget-friendly Silk’n. She uses it three times a week without fail and likes that it has four light settings, though she mostly uses the red-light option to help with acne scarring. “I’ve also suffered from insomnia in the past, and this really helps me drift off to sleep … two birds,” Griffiths adds.
The TheraFace Mask is another Therabody skin-care tool that I suggest for a recipient who (a) wants to target tone, (b) struggles with hormonal breakouts, or (c) suffers from tension headaches. I received this device as a gift from my partner last Christmas, and it’s completely leveled up my complexion. My face is brighter, and I’ve unlocked a firmness similar to the results you might get with a microcurrent device like the ever-popular NuFace. What sets the Theraface Mask apart is that it combines LED-light therapy and 17 massaging nodes (which you can toggle through for treatments of only red light or just vibration). It’s also hands-free and has removable eye shields, allowing to multitask while wearing it.
Another at-home LED device that I recommend is Kala’s professional-grade mini panel. It uses red and near-infrared wavelengths to penetrate deep beneath the skin’s surface. There are so many positive skin effects, from stimulating cell renewal, enhancing collagen production, smoothing fine lines, and minimizing sunspots, plus tons of other health benefits, like improved recovery. The best part is that the tabletop device requires no setup and has a simple touch display. I turn on my Kala Mini for 15 minutes while I’m doing my skin-care routine or relaxing on the couch, and I swear there’s been a noticeable improvement in my acne scars and my skin’s overall smoothness after only a few months.
Skin-care books to gift
When we first talked to beauty experts for this story, they recommended Caroline Hirons’s Skincare as the best beauty book available. “It’s just an absolutely brilliant skin-care A to Z with solid advice,” says dermatologist Dr. Ranella Hirsch. “It doesn’t have pointless steps or impossible results, just practical, applicable, and straightforward advice.” Designed with both skin-care experts and newbies in mind, the book assists readers in curating their own personalized routines. “It’s the best matter-of-fact book to address beauty that I’ve read,” says dermatologist Dr. Corey L. Hartman.
For a guide specifically focused on Black skin care, freelance beauty editor and columnist Ava Welsing-Kitcher suggests Funmi Fetto’s Palette. Fetto is both an author and a beauty editor, having worked for publications such as British Vogue and Glamour. “Funmi’s built an incredible career by being one of the truest voices of guidance for Black and brown beauty lovers,” says Welsing-Kitcher. “Her dedicated space to the products that work for us is something we were long overdue for in the industry.”
After her years of beauty writing and providing advice to thousands of our readers every week, Rio’s book compiles her super-simple principles for healthy skin into one handy manual. Let’s Face It is just what the skin-care-obsessed person needs to solve their skin concerns.
For a skin-care obsessive who’s curious about more science-y topics, like emerging information about skin microbes and probiotics, consider doctor and journalist James Hamblin’s Clean. Hamblin examines the science and culture of how we care for our skin today and helps to reveal why most of our standards of cleanliness are less related to health than we think.
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